The NBA rings in 2013 with a slate of six games, none of which are nationally televised, including a few matinees. Here’s a look at Monday’s NBA schedule - home teams are listed second, all times are Eastern:
NBA 2012 schedule: Hawks-Rockets, Nets-Spurs highlight New Year’s Eve matinees
P.J. Carlesimo will face his toughest opponent by far in his coaching stint with the Brooklyn Nets, one of three games featuring two above-.500 teams on the last day of 2013.
Daniel Shirey-US PRESSWIRE
Charlotte Bobcats (7-23) vs. Chicago Bulls (16-12), 3 p.m., SportSouth, WGN: The Bobcats got off to a nice start this year at 7-5, seemingly having reversed their franchise’s direction after a historically bad season last year. Now, they’ve lost 18 straight, and if the Bulls are on their game, it should be 19. On the plus side, they’re still fourth in their division, with the Wizards sitting at 4-24.
Memphis Grizzlies (19-8) vs. Indiana Pacers (17-13), 3 p.m., SportSouth, Fox Sports Indiana: Defense will be the name of the game, with Memphis No. 1 in the league in defensive efficiency and Indiana not too far back at No. 3. Points will be an issue for Indiana, though, who also have the third-worst offensive efficiency numbers in the league without Danny Granger.
Miami Heat (20-8) vs. Orlando Magic (12-18), 5 p.m., SunSports, Fox Sports Florida: The Heat seemed to have regained juggernaut status with their six-game win streak featuring a Christmas Day victory over the Oklahoma City Thunder, but they’ve now lost two ugly ones: one to the Detroit Pistons, and one by 15 to the Milwaukee Bucks. Meanwhile, the Magic seemed to have accomplished mediocrity with an injured, depleted roster post-Dwight, but they’ve lost five straight to fall to six games below .500.
Brooklyn Nets (16-14) vs. San Antonio Spurs (24-8), 7 p.m., YES, Fox Sports Southwest: Sure, the Nets are 2-0 under P.J. Carlesimo, but Mikhail Prokhorov already admitted he intentionally fired Avery Johnson before an easy pair of games. It’ll be tougher for the Nets to take down a top team like the Spurs.
Atlanta Hawks (19-9) vs. Houston Rockets (16-14), 7 p.m., SportSouth, Comcast SportsNet Houston: A four-game win streak has Atlanta just a game behind Miami in the standings, but they might be without Josh Smith, who hurt his hip in the team’s win Friday. They won again without him against the Pacers Saturday, with Zaza Pachulia scoring 17 points and grabbing 14 boards off the bench. Houston had a four-game win streak of their own before getting walloped by San Antonio and Oklahoma City. James Harden had 45 points in the first matchup between these two teams, a Houston victory.
Phoenix Suns (11-20) vs. Oklahoma City Thunder (23-6), 8 p.m., Fox Sports Arizona, Fox Sports Oklahoma: The Suns have only won two of 15 games on the road, while the Thunder have only lost two of 17 at home.
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